


Fall of the Jedi

by darthbrooks



Series: The Daario Trilogy [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Complete, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Gay Poe Dameron, Gentle Sex, Inspired by Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren (Comics), Loss of Virginity, Luke Skywalker's Jedi Temple, Original Character(s), Planet Batuu (Star Wars), Planet Hoth (Star Wars), Planet Kashyyyk (Star Wars), Pre-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Siblings, Slow Burn, Smut, Twins, Virgin Ben Solo, Virgin Kylo Ren
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 06:33:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29647212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darthbrooks/pseuds/darthbrooks
Summary: Den and Ana Daario are twin Jedi under the tutelage of Luke Skywalker. But when the Jedi Temple is destroyed, they are sent fleeing across the galaxy, in search of their missing master and pursued by an old friend...(Takes place 6 years before The Force Awakens)
Relationships: Ben Solo/Original Female Character(s), Kylo Ren/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Daario Trilogy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2178537
Kudos: 1





	1. The Padawan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! This is my first time posting on AO3, and this is something I've written as a self-insert for my best friend and I. Hope you enjoy!

“Unf!”

Den clutched under his ribcage as he skidded back on the ground, his sparring partner standing above him, silhouetted in the white sunlight, pointing his practice sabre at the other student’s throat.

Den rose to his feet, taking his stance. “Best two out of three.”

Ben shrugged widely. “Suit yourself.”

From the sidelines, Ana watched as the two paced to opposite sides of the sparring ring.

“Den,” Ana said, “If you don’t anticipate his moves he’s just gonna—”

Den held out his hand to silence her. “Yeah, okay, _I know._ ”

Ana rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, knowing she was about to watch her twin brother get beaten again. Ben almost always won sparring matches. And when he didn’t, she had a feeling that he was just letting the other person win.

Ben was calm, cool, and collected as Den came rushing in, swinging his lightsaber overhead. He easily blocked Den’s first downward bash, and his next one from the side, and then another from underneath. Den was hammering away in vain as Ben easily parried each of his blows.

Eventually, Den was running out of stamina. There was no landing an attack on the other man. Just as he paused to catch his breath between attacks, Ben sensed his guard was down. He whirled the sparring saber in a slashing motion, catching Den behind his kneecaps and knocking him to the ground once again.

“Care to try again?” Ben asked.

Den rose to his feet indignantly huffing. “No, that’s enough for now I think.”

“You weren’t timing your strikes,” Ana piped up, “Your rhythm was predictable. You weren’t breathing in what your opponent was—”

“ _Okay_ , Ana,” Den snapped, “You’re not Master Luke. I didn’t ask you.”

“Okay _, sorry,_ ” Ana responded, “But Master Luke says we should always be teaching each other. You don’t need to snap at me just because you can’t take a critique—”

“It was your timing,” Ben admitted.

Den sighed, looking at his sparring partner ruefully. “Great. I’ll work on it.” He dropped the sparring saber to the ground, letting it clatter onto the stone ground as he stormed off.

“I didn’t mean to anger him,” Ben grumbled.

“Ignore him,” Ana said, “He’s just a sore loser, that’s all.”

“Hm.” Ben let his own sparring stick fall to the ground before looking out over the cliffside to the sunset sparking onto the water. Ana narrowed her eyes.

“You good? You seem...off.”

“Huh? Oh,” Ben looked at her over his shoulder, “I’ve got a lot on my mind.”

“Like what?” Ana asked.

“It’s nothing,” Ben dismissed her, “I don’t think your brother likes me.”

“ _That’s_ what’s bothering you?”

“I— _no,”_ Ben scoffed, “I was just saying.”

“I don’t think that’s true,” Ana said, “He’s just insecure. And jealous.” 

“Hm.”

“What?” Ana prodded.

“Would you say that about Voe? Or Hennix? Or Tai?” Ben was growing agitated, his face reddening, “Because they all treat me the same way! With—resentment.”

“Ben, you’re the best of us,” Ana said, “So, yes. I’d say they’re jealous.”

He studied her with his intensely dark eyes. “Are _you_ jealous of me?”

“I...” Ana was taken aback by the question, but then she just laughed, “ _No,_ Ben. I do my own thing. I don’t feel the need to compare myself to you. I mean, you’re Master Luke’s _nephew._ What can they expect? The Force is clearly strong in your family.”

Ben was silent, just his eyes trailing down to the ground.

“I feel like if you expect them to dislike you, then that’s what they’ll do,” she added.

“I’ve tried to relate to them, I have,” Ben said, “But I always feel like they’re keeping me at a distance and—”

“Have you told Master Luke you feel this way?” Ana asked.

Ben laughed a little with contempt. “He’s the worst of them.”

“Ben, he’s your _uncle._ ”

“I’m his legacy,” Ben said, “Do you know how much pressure that is? And now, he—”

Ana leaned in as he trailed off. “He _what?_ ”

“It’s nothing,” Ben said, “I didn’t mean to unload all of this onto you.”

“No, you’re not—don’t _apologize,_ I—” Ana stammered, “If you need to talk, I’m here.”

Ben pursed his lip, unsure what to say, but finally managing an awkward and sterile “Thank you.”

She sighed, sensing that he was hiding something. Since youth, Luke’s padawans had always known each other’s business—that was the consequence of Force-sensitives growing up together. Everyone could sense everything about everyone. But Ben was different. The Force cast a long shadow over him. It’s almost as if he used it as a cloaking device.

Just as she began to speak, the words caught in her throat as she caught sight of a robed figure standing at the edge of the sparring ring. She quickly bowed.

“Master Skywalker.”

“Ana,” Luke smiled warmly, but it faded quickly into a look of unease, “If you don’t mind—I’d like to speak with Ben alone for a moment.”

Ben and Ana exchanged a glance. There was a sadness and a fear in his eyes that panged in her chest.

“Of course, Master.” She made her way back towards the main structure of the Temple, hardly able to imagine what Ben and his uncle were speaking about.

Ana woke up in a cold sweat. The stone hut was cool and silent, only the sound of the tall grasses rustling outside in the cool night breeze. Her nightmares had become more vivid over the last few nights. She had chalked it up to stress, or stir-craziness, or just fitful sleep—but the images were sticking with her.

She had seen a figure in a black cloak and a battle-mask, wielding a crackling red cross-guarded lightsaber. She had watched a red beam cut its way across a black sky. And worse—she had seen her brother falling into a dark abyss, reaching for her. But she couldn’t save him in her dream. She couldn’t will herself to.

She wasn’t sure what it meant. But this was the third night it had woken her up. Perhaps it was time to tell Master Luke but—she was afraid what he would say. She didn’t want to tell him she was afraid. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and hate leads to suffering. It was the path to the Dark Side. Not something she wanted to alert Skywalker to.

But, she thought perhaps Den could be of some help. He had a knack for interpreting portents from the Force. He was much more attuned to that sort of thing than her.

She slowly stood up from her bed, drawing her robes around herself as she mounted the wooden ladder up to the loft where Den slept. She’d woken him up in the dead of night before, and he would be cranky at first, but eventually he’d get over it.

But she stopped on the last step to the loft. Den’s bed was empty, the covers pulled back. Her eyes panned over to the weapon rack on the wall—his lightsaber had gone with him. She quickly climbed back down the ladder, turning to the entrance to their hut. The curtain had been pulled back, the cool breeze blowing in.

She sat on her bed and pulled on her boots before tracking outside the hut, taking a look each way. It was the dead of night—all of the other students were sleeping. She picked out a trail of flattened grass leading away from the temple, towards the hangar bay. Still rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she followed.

DK-16 emitted an inquisitive chirp as Den lowered the gangway to the _Essence._

“Quiet, DK,” Den whispered, “Start up the engines.”

“Boo-boop?”

“Just do it, please.”

“Boooo...”

Den walked up the gangway, turning around to press the button and close the bay door, but he stopped. At the bottom of the gangway, Ana was standing, glaring up at him with her arms crossed.

“Ana, I—”

“What are you doing?”

Den stood, frozen for a moment.

“Den,” Ana repeated, “What. Are you doing?”

“I’m leaving.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah, Ana, I am,” Den said, “I didn’t want to do this to you but—I can’t be here anymore. I feel so trapped. I’m not learning anything anymore. Master Luke puts all of his attention on Ben and the rest of us just have to—”

“Wait,” Ana interrupted, “You’re seriously leaving because Ben beat you in a sparring match today?”

“ _No,_ of course not. It’s so much more than that,” Den said, “I don’t belong here. I don’t know if I... believe in the Jedi Order.”

Ana was dumbfounded. “Den, what does that even _mean?_ ”

“I just—” he struggled, “Just because we are attuned to the Force doesn’t mean we _have_ to be Jedi. We should be able to forge our own paths.”

“So you want to forge yours as a traitor, then?”

Den shook his head. “Master Luke is clinging to ancient ideals but what he doesn’t realize is that the galaxy has changed,” he said, “You ever think maybe the Jedi Order died out for a reason?”

“Because they let their guard down to the Sith,” Ana said, “The Sith are gone. But they’ll be back if we don’t stay together.”

“Ana, I want to have my _own_ life,” Den told her, “And if that makes me selfish, or a traitor, then—so be it. I never _asked_ for this.”

Ana was deeply offended. “Luke took us in, Den. We had _no one,_ and Luke found us.”

“And I’m thankful for everything he taught me,” Den said, “But I’m not here against my will.”

“I don’t want to do this without you,” Ana began to tear up.

“Well,” Den said, and then trailed off—only able to give her a defeated shrug.

Ana shook her head. “Go then.”

Den nodded at her, about to close the bay door one more time, when something caught his eye on the ridge above the hangar bay. A red cloud was swelling around the temple, seemingly glowing from within. He narrowed his eyes.

“You see that?”

Ana lowered her brow. “See what?”

“Something’s happening at the temple.”

Ana turned around, watching as the maelstrom kept churning. She felt a cold chill up her spine.

“We need to go see what’s going on,” Ana said.

Den looked on in fear, and weighed his options. He knew this was unnatural, that something horrible was happening to the temple. But he had already made the decision that it wasn’t his problem anymore. He reached for the door control when—

_BOOM._

A flash of lightning crackled through the dark cloud and enveloped the temple, blasting the structure to bits. The shockwave quickly advanced over the ridge, knocking Ana onto the ground and sending her skidding across the concrete platform. The lightning storm spread and short-circuited the ship’s systems, sending a searing pain through Den’s hand as the control shocked him and he flew back against the opposite wall of the ship, his vision slowly going black...


	2. The Temple

As Den came to, his head was spinning. DK stood over him, his head cocked as he prodded at Den’s shoulder with his mechanical leg.

“I’m okay, DK, I—” he sat up and rubbed his head, sore from where it had hit the metal hull. He took a whiff of the air, smelling the thick smoke hanging on the air. He slowly got up and stumbled to the gangway, leaning against the entrance as he looked to the mountain of flame that the temple had become. Ana was standing at the bottom, gazing up the cliff.

“Ana!” Den called out, “Get on the ship!”

But Ana kept staring ahead, a heavy feeling in her chest. She heard a pained cry through the Force—a voice she recognized.

Her eyes went wide. “Ben.”

“Ana, come on!” Den called.

She called back up the gangway. “No, Ben is in trouble! I sensed it!” She reached at her hip for her lightsaber, but a feeling of panic set in when she didn’t find it. She had the sobering realization that she had left it behind—in the inferno.

“Are you crazy?! You’re not going back there!”

Ana took off running towards the ridge, but she stopped dead in her tracks as Den reached out a hand, pulling her with the Force. She strained against it, trying feebly to take one more step but almost nearly immobilized.

“Den, my saber!”

“It’s gone, Ana! We need to go!”

Ana gritted her teeth, breathing deeply. Den strained as he tightened his Force-grip, but he could feel her fighting it. As she exhaled, she broke free, pushing her hands back to turn Den’s hold against him, and he was pushed back, stumbling into the ship as she ran up the ledge towards the temple.

The entire temple was in flames, including all of the huts and structures surrounding it. Apart from the roar of the inferno, there was no other sound. The Living Force that usually hummed through the sacred site had gone dead, replaced with nothing but the smell of smoke and death on the air.

Ana held her hand above her eyes, trying to keep the smoke out of them as she squinted forward on the path to her own hut. She wanted to find Ben, but there was no way she was going anywhere without her lightsaber.

When she finally reach her and Den’s hut, it had suffered the same fate as every other building. The entrance curtain had been singed away, but the flames were mostly encasing the outer shell—leaving the inside to fill with smoke.

Ana coughed and waved the smoke away from her face as she entered, drawing up the collar of her undershirt to cover her mouth. Her eyes watered and burned, but she was able to reach out to the weapon rack by her bed and grab her lightsaber hilt. But as she snatched it from the wall, the outer stone of the hut came with it as the structure began to crumble. As she fixed her saber to her waist, she was overcome by a coughing fit and doubled over, wretching violently from the thick smoke.

The sound of rocks cracking rang through the bell-shaped hut, as the ceiling began to cave in. Ana stumbled as the stones began to fall all around her. She tried to reach for the opposite wall for support as she made her way to the exit—but she cried out as a large stone landed on her, pinning her down.

The pain shot through her back as her face hit the floor, and she reached out with a single hand, calling out through the Force—

_Den..._

But the rest of the hut came crumbling down and the weight and pain mounted on top of her as she became the bottom of a pile of rubble.

She took a sharp gasp as her eyes snapped open, her lungs suddenly expanding from where they had been constricted. There was still a great pain in her lower back, but the weight was gone.

Her vision slowly faded back in, and she looked up and ahead of her. Den was standing there, his eyes closed and his face strained, both arms stretched up and outward, his hands flexed. She looked around and above her—the rocks that had made up the stone hut were all levitating above her, suspended in the air.

She turned back to see Den straining and she quickly crawled out from under them, turning around and sitting on the ground to see them all give back to gravity as Den released them. He hoisted Ana up, slinging her arm around his shoulders.

“Come on,” he said, “Let’s get out of here.”

DK skittered around their feet as Den helped Ana onto the ship.

“Boo? Boo-boop!”

“We’re alright, DK,” Den assured, “Open the med-bay door for us, please.”

DK quickly scurried to the metal door, driving his scomp link into the port and whirring until it opened. Den gently laid Ana in the medbay capsule before closing it.

“Get her hooked up to the bacta tank,” Den instructed DK, “I’m flying us out.”

DK issued a chirp of affirmation as Den proceeded to the cockpit, flipping the switches and firing up the engine. The tonged wings revolved back into flight position as the _Essence_ left the ground, zipping over the temple and out of the atmosphere.

On the ground, Ben turned his gaze skyward, watching the bright blue exhaust trail across the sky. He clenched his jaw, knowing Ana was aboard that ship.

Ana awoke as the ship rumbled, opening her eyes to DK inquisitively tilting his head at her from where he was perched on one of the bacta canisters.

“Bee-de-beep!”

Ana laughed, taking the ventilator mask off of her. Her pain had subsided, but she still winced as she brought herself up to a seated position. “I’m glad to see you too, DK,” she said, giving the droid a little pat on his head.

Den turned around as he heard the door to the cockpit whir open, seeing Ana step in slowly.

“Hey,” he said, “How’re you feeling?”

“Like I got hit with a pile of rocks.”

“Well.”

“I felt the ship rumble,” Ana said, “What’s going on?”

Den shook his head. “The hyperdrive isn’t working. The cooling unit must have been completely fried in the lightning storm at the temple.”

“What _was_ that?” Ana asked gravely.

Den met her eyes, sensing the same fear in her that he felt in himself. “I don’t know. It was some sort of attack.”

“But by _who?_ ”

“I don’t know,” Den said, “But you know what concerns me most? When I ran after you—I didn’t sense Master Luke.”

Ana was silent for a moment. The Force usually hummed with energy when Master Luke was around. But she had sensed the same deadness. “Do you think he—”

Den sighed. “I don’t know,” he said. Ana studied him—there was an intense guilt weighing on him. They had only survived because he was trying to leave.

“Where do we go from here?” Ana asked.

“I tried calculating a jump to Hosnian Prime,” Den said, “But we’ll never make it to the Core with no hyperdrive.”

“Hosnian Prime?”

“Yes. To tell the Republic that the Jedi Temple was attacked,” Den paused, “...and to tell Leia.”

Ana exhaled wordlessly. If Luke was gone, and her son was in trouble, she needed to know. And the twins were quite probably the only escapees from the carnage.

“Can we get the hyperdrive fixed?” Ana asked.

Den shook his head. “There’s not a spaceport within five parsecs of here, and we’ll never make it that far on the engine alone.”

“So what do we do?”

“I’ve scanned the sector. I think there’s somewhere we can go that we can find the parts we need, but it’ll be a slow journey if we want to conserve our fuel.”

“Where to, then?”

Den brought up a map of the sector on the ship’s nav-computer, zooming in on an isolated system. “Hoth.”


	3. The Base

Ana rubbed her hands together before holding them flat near a radiator pylon. Hoth was a new kind of cold, even inside the base. Once they landed after a long journey of limping through realspace, there was a lot of work to do just getting the base habitable before repairs on the ship could begin. Luckily, the Rebel Alliance had left behind all the important hardware when they had evacuated the base 25 years prior.

While Den salvaged parts to repair the ship, Ana spent her time in the command center. She was able to get the old systems booted up, illuminating the icy cavern with the lights of various nav-screens and control consoles. They had even found an old bacta tank, which had allowed her to recover fully from her injuries.

The old systems had allowed Ana to fully scan the system. They really _were_ in the middle of nowhere.

“Hey,” Den said, entering the command center, “I’ve got the hyperdrive fixed. As soon as it finishes the coolant refill we should be good to go.”

“Great,” Ana replied, “I can’t wait to get off this ice cube.”

“Me neither,” Den said, “Hey, listen. Have you thought about—you know—where we should go? After we tell Leia?”

Ana sighed. “I mean—I don’t know. The thought crossed my mind that we could go home but... the temple _was_ our home.”

“Yeah.”

“Where were _you_ going? When you left?”

Den shrugged. “I don’t know. I just knew I was leaving.”

“Well,” Ana said, “You left. So. I guess you got what you wanted.”

“Ana this is _not_ what I—”

They were interrupted by a rapid beeping sound from one of the consoles. DK came scurrying in, emitting a shrill noise.

“What _is_ that?” Den asked.

Ana went to the console, scanning the screen. “There’s a ship entering the atmosphere and headed this way.”

“Could it be one of the other Jedi?”

“I don’t know but it’s coming in hot,” Ana said, “Let me see if I can get a feed from the outside cameras.”

Ana flipped through a few switches before finally getting a stream from the surveillance camera posted in front of the base. There was a long, black transport landing out front.

“What kind of ship is that?” Den asked.

“It looks like some kind of... prison ship,” Ana said.

They watched the gangway drop from the transport as seven figures, all in black emerged.

“That’s not good.”

“DK,” Ana said, “Go make sure the blast door is closed.”

“The Empire found a way in here before,” Den said, “The shield generator is fried.”

Ana watched the screen as one of the figures ignited a red lightsaber—crackling with the impurity of its kyber crystal, with crossguards to vent out the volatile energy coursing through it. He held out his hand to his followers, signaling them to stay before turning and headed for the western exterior of the base.

“Who _is_ that?” Ana asked.

“I don’t know,” Den said, “But he knows there’s a way in. Get to the western corridor and try to hold him off. I’ll stay in here—there’s an old Rebel distress beacon.”

“Den, we’re in the middle of nowhere, no one will even recognize that beacon anymore.”

“Ana, we can’t escape until the ship is finished cycling the coolant,” Den told her, “You got a better idea?”

Ana huffed, thinking. She didn’t. She took her lightsaber from its holster, quickly making her way through the ice tunnels sprawling past the hangar to the west.

She was making her way through one of the icy tunnels when a voice stopped her dead in her tracks.

“Ana.”

The voice reverberated through the glacial walls, garbled and mechanical, yet amplified to the point where the sound hit her square in her chest. She quickly ignited her lightsaber, and it hummed as she held it in front of her, the violet light illuminating the walls. She couldn’t see anyone—the echo of the voice made it hard to tell how far the source was.

“Who are you?” Ana called out, “What do you want?”

“I want no stone left unturned,” the voice answered, “I will finish what I started.”

There was something familiar in the voice, a thought that made her stomach lurch. It couldn’t be him.

“Did you—are _you_ the one who destroyed the temple?” Ana asked into the darkness.

“That place was a lie,” the voice responded, “And so it burned.”

She clenched her teeth. “What did you do to Master Luke?”

“He tried to murder me. So I killed him.”

Ana’s eyes went wide. “ _No._ ” The thought had crossed her mind, but neither her nor Den had the will to say it.

“And now,” the voice said, “I will end the lies of the Jedi.”

At the end of the tunnel, through the mist and condensation seeping off the ice, she saw a red blade crackle to life, the buzzing sound pulsating through the air.

Ana was enraged and brandished her lightsaber, charging the darkened figure. As she approached, the figure didn’t even lift his lightsaber—just merely thrust out a hand and sent her flying back down the tunnel. She heard his boots crunching the snow as he began to approach and she began to rise. As she looked up, he had his lightsaber raised to execute her, but she quickly brought her own up to block it. As the lightsabers clashed and the blades sizzled against each other, she looked up at his helmet with pure fury in her dark eyes.

“Who _are_ you _?_ ”

He disengaged his saber, allowing Ana to rise. Sensing that he was standing down, she disengaged her own as the cloaked figure brought his hands to his helmet and lifted it.

Ana gasped. “ _Ben._ ”

“I hated that name,” he told her, “Named for someone I never even met. Just a reminder of the legacy I was expected to fulfill. A legacy that was a _lie._ ”

“You killed him,” Ana said breathlessly, “You killed Master Luke.”

“I only defended myself,” he said, “He was going to kill me in my sleep.”

Ana studied his eyes—there was anger in them, but there was also great pain and betrayal. She didn’t want to believe him. But she couldn’t help it. “Why would he do that?”

“He sensed me slipping,” he said, “Slipping away from his teachings, from the Jedi.”

“Turning,” Ana said grimly, “To the Dark Side.”

“Freeing myself,” he corrected her, “Ben Solo could never be free, so I became something else.”

“And what did you become?”

“I am Kylo Ren, master of the Knights of Ren.”

Ana looked at him in disbelief. The Knights of Ren were a group of powerful Force-adepts who served no one but themselves. Luke had fought them before, and now Ben had joined the Order’s sworn enemy.

“You’re a traitor,” Ana growled.

“My master may show you mercy if you come to him willingly,” Kylo told her, and then held out his hand. Ana looked down at it, breathing heavily. “Come with me.”

Ana hesitated for a moment. She thought maybe there was some way yet to save Ben. That perhaps going with him was the only way to ensure her and Den’s safety. And she could meet this unseen master, and kill them.

Her thoughts were interrupted when the base rumbled, the sound of blaster fire coming in muffled from outside.

Kylo’s comm-link bleeped, a garbled voice coming in. “Master, a Republic fighter squadron has zeroed in on our location.”

His jaw tensed, he retracted his hand from Ana. “I’ll be back for you,” he said, “Fetch your brother.”

He turned around, heading for the exit tunnel.

Kylo emerged into the snow to see T-70 X-Wings diving above, firing on the Knights’ ship, the _Night Buzzard._ Luckily, its hull was sturdy, and it would take more than a few shots to destroy it. The other Knights of Ren had manned the sentry guns, firing on the ships.

One of them flew over, and Kylo squinted through the bright sunlight glinting off the snow to see it—it was marked with a series of kill-marks, and its distinctive red and orange markings.

That was Wedge Antilles’ ship.

He quickly put his helmet back on, a wave of shame overcoming him. He had known Captain Antilles since he was young—he was a good friend to his family, and now trained the New Republic’s most elite pilots. Likely, this was just a training squadron—but the thought of being stranded and taken in by Antilles made him feel sick to his stomach. He wasn’t ready for his family to know what he had become. Not yet.

Kylo quickly made his way to the ship, calling out to the others.

“Knights, retreat!”

They were glad to, as most of the sentry guns had been blasted to smithereens by Antilles and his squadron. They piled in the ship, and it took off. Two of the X-wings gave chase, but they were dodging fire from the _Night Buzzard’_ s rear turret.

Kylo was in the cockpit, standing over the pilot and watching the shield gauge slowly deplete.

“Punch it!” he commanded.

And so the _Night Buzzard_ blinked into hyperspace, and out of sight.


	4. The Senator

Den and Ana shielded their eyes at the bright sunlight streaming in under the blast door as the metal creaked and it rose, opening the mouth of the cave base.

The squadron had landed outside, and several pilots were walking into the base. The squadron leader was an older man in a blue flight-suit, taking his helmet off and holding it under his arm. His breath appeared in the air as he marveled around at the base.

“Echo Base,” he said, “Never thought I’d see this place again. Never _wanted_ to.” He added a chuckle.

“You’ve been here before?” Den asked, “You fought with the Alliance?”

The pilot saluted. “Captain Antilles, New Republic Naval Academy. I’m guessing you two are a long way from home. And you’re lucky I was in the sector running training exercises. Most of these younger guys in the New Republic wouldn’t have recognized that old Rebel call-sign.” His eyes drifted to the _Essence,_ which had a layer of frost on it. “That your ship?”

“We stopped here to make repairs,” Ana told him, “Our hyperdrive cooling unit was fried.”

“Wait—” Den said, putting the pieces together, “Captain Antilles, you said? Like, _the_ Captain Antilles?”

Wedge grinned. “I guess someone’s a bit of a history buff.”

“It’s just—” Den started, pausing for a moment, “We studied under Luke Skywalker. We’re Jedi.” He pulled his robe back to reveal the lightsaber on his holster.

Wedge’s eyes went wide and then he furrowed his brow.

“What are you doing all the way out here?” he asked pointedly.

“Luke’s temple was attacked,” Den told him, “We believe we are the only two who escaped.” Ana felt a wave of unease wash over her. She now knew that wasn’t true.

“And Luke?” Wedge inquired.

Den shook his head. “We don’t know. We were trying to get back to Hosnian Prime to tell Senator Organa.”

Antilles sighed, looking down at the ground before looking back at the two Jedi with new resolve. “Allow my squadron to run a diagnostic on your ship to make sure you’re safe to fly,” he said, “They’re just trainees, so they’re a little green but they’ll get the job done. Then we’ll give you an escort back to Hosnian Prime.”

“Thank you, Captain Antilles.”

Den was wedged under the servomotor module, lying on his back, making sure the articulators weren’t frozen stuck from the cold.

“Hey, you need a hand?”

The voice startled him, and so he jumped and bumped his head hard on the metal hull of the wing. He slid out, rubbing his forehead and looking up at the flight student gazing down on him, a wrench in one hand, and his helmet tucked under the other.

“Sorry,” his eyes crinkled as he winced apologetically, “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“No, ah, you’re fine,” Den said, “Thanks—I think I’ve got it.”

The pilot just stood there, dopey-eyed for a moment. Den narrowed his eyes.

“Is there something you wanna say, or?”

“Oh, no, sorry, I just—” he held out his hand to shake, “I’m Poe Dameron, ace pilot of the New Republic.”

“Den Daario, Jedi Knight,” he responded, “Aren’t you... just a student still?”

“Yeah, I mean—but I’m studying directly under Captain Antilles. That’s pretty much just reserved for the ace pilots.”

“Gotcha,” Den smirked, “That’s okay. I’m still a student too. Or, I was.”

“I’ve never met a Jedi before,” Poe beamed, “I bet you didn’t even need us to save you. You could’ve handled those guys with your laser sword.”

Den chuckled. “It’s called a _lightsaber,_ and those guys were the _Knights of Ren,_ so—I appreciate that but I’m not so sure.”

“Aw, come on,” Poe lightly punched his shoulder, “You don’t have to be humble, you trained with _Luke Skywalker._ ”

It was cute at first, but now this guy was getting too comfortable. “My sister’s a Jedi. You should go meet her.”

“Didn’t seem like she was in the mood,” he said.

Den thought for a moment. Ana had skulked off after the New Republic squadron began tuning up the ship, retreating to the command center.

“Huh,” Den said, “I should probably—”

“So like,” Poe interrupted, oblivious, “What’s like, the _biggest_ thing you’ve killed with your lightsaber?”

Den sighed. “Look, if I let you _hold_ my lightsaber will you leave me alone?”

Poe’s eyes were saucers. “Oh my G—I—I mean, yeah if you,” he was stammering, “Yeah I’ll leave you alone forever absolutely.”

Den drew the saber from its hilt, holding it out vertically, allowing Poe to grip the bottom of the hilt. Den flicked his thumb over the switch, igniting the bright teal blade. The breath caught in Poe’s throat as the bluish-green light flickered in his dark eyes.

“Whoa...”

Den smiled. “Pretty cool, huh?”

“It matches your eyes,” Poe bit his bottom lip.

Den blushed furiously. “Okay there, flyboy.”

“I can hold it myself, you know,” Poe told him, “You can trust me.”

“I assume I don’t have to tell you that you need to be _very_ careful with it.”

“Yeah, you got it.”

Den cautiously loosened his grip on the lightsaber, allowing the full weight of the hilt to settle into Poe’s hand. Slowly, he rotated it sideways, holding it such that he could admire the blade, feeling the heat on his face.

“This is amazing,” Poe said, “You could cut someone in half with this.”

“Yeah, well,” Den gently grabbed the hilt and retracted the blade, “The goal is not to _have_ to.”

“Listen,” Poe said, “I know you’ve got to get to Senator Organa. But uh—if you’re gonna be on Hosnian Prime for a while—”

“I don’t think so,” Den smiled politely, “I mean. I don’t think I’ll be sticking around.”

“Yeah, okay,” Poe conceded, “But if you do, I mean. Look me up at the Academy. You ever been in one of the new T-85’s?”

“Hey, remember how you said you were gonna leave me alone if I let you hold the lightsaber?”

“Oh, yeah,” Poe said, “That’s right. I’ll just be doing that now then.”

“Nice meeting you, Dameron,” Den smirked dryly at him.

“Yeah, you too.” Poe watched as Den passed by him, heading into the control center.

Ana pressed her hand against the cold steel of one of the consoles, listlessly watching the lights blinking on the star-charts.

“Ana.”

She turned around, seeing Den in the entranceway.

“Antilles has our ship ready, he’s ready to give us an escort.” As she stood, he noted the sad look in her eyes. “What’s going on with you?”

“Before you sent the beacon,” Ana said, “I—I faced him. The Master of the Knights of Ren. I encountered him in the ice tunnels.”

“The one with the lightsaber?” Den asked, “What happened? I saw him escape on the security cams.”

Ana’s expression darkened. “It was Ben.”

Den stared at her in disbelief. “ _No._ ”

“He’s turned, Den,” she explained, “He said that the night the temple was destroyed, Luke tried to kill him.”

“So... _Ben_ destroyed the temple?”

“I think so,” Ana said, “I don’t know. But Den—he told me he _killed_ Master Luke.”

Den sighed heavily. “We need to get to Hosnian Prime. Let’s go.”

“Prepare to drop out of hyperspace,” Wedge’s voice patched in over the _Essence_ ’s transponder. Den reached overhead to the hyperdrive lever and flipped it, the bright blue streaks of hyperspace giving way to the enormous world of Hosnian Prime—the sprawl of the capital city arranged in rings of light upon its surface.

“I’ve told Leia to expect you,” Wedge patched through, “Follow me, I’ll escort you to her personal landing pad.”

The _Essence_ followed the lead X-wing into the atmosphere, past giant shimmering towers. One of the training X-wings pulled up beside the cockpit of the _Essence._

“Good luck, Jedi,” Poe’s voice patched through. Den looked over to his left to watch Poe saluting from under his helmet.

“Thanks, Dameron,” Den said, “May the Force be with you.”

His X-wing listed to its side, peeling off from the formation and heading off into the horizon.

“Make a new friend?” Ana asked.

“Guess so,” Den quipped.

Wedge’s X-wing coasted down a river flowing towards a large, flat building—the New Republic Senatorial Complex. He listed down the side of it and landed on one of the many landing platforms extending from the various doors.

After landing, Ana and Den met Wedge on the tarmac.

“You two ready?” he asked.

Ana and Den exchanged a glance. “Yeah.”

Wedge led them into the large glass doors to an ornate office—several lounge chairs and sofas arranged in a circular pit in the middle, with an ornate crystalline chandelier hanging above. At the side of the room, there was a large rounded desk. From behind it, stood an older woman with brown hair and wearing a long light blue gown with a cape.

“Den and Ana Daario,” she smiled to greet them, but she had a sadness in her eyes as she came around to the front of her desk, “Thank you for bringing them here, Wedge.”

“It’s my pleasure, Leia,” Wedge nodded, “I’ll leave you to it.” He walked back onto the hangar bay, climbing into his X-wing.

“Senator Organa,” Ana said, bowing with her brother, “It’s an honor to meet you.”

“We wish it was under better circumstances,” Den added darkly.

Leia took a breath. “Tell me what happened.”

“We were in the hangar bay when—a storm overtook the temple. Engulfed it in flames,” Ana started.

“This was no natural storm,” Den added, “Clearly some sort of attack.”

“I went back to get my lightsaber and—I couldn’t sense anyone. Den and I escaped alone.”

“We took refuge on Hoth, where we were ambushed by the Knights of Ren. Before Captain Antilles saved us.”

Leia pursed her lips. “The Knights of Ren,” she repeated slowly.

“There’s something else,” Ana added, a heaviness in her chest set in as she prepared to say the words, “They were led... by Ben.”

Leia looked to the floor sadly. “I sensed his turning,” she said, “At least... at least now I know where he’s gone.”

“I didn’t recognize him at all,” Ana said, “And...” she fought back tears as she prepared to tell Leia her brother was dead, “He told me he killed Luke.”

But unexpectedly, Leia smiled, almost laughing. She placed a hand on Ana’s shoulder. “Oh, Ana,” she comforted her, “Luke isn’t _gone._ I can feel his presence. He’s still out there.”

Ana breathed a sigh of relief. “Then... Ben lied to me?”

“I can’t tell you what’s going through Ben’s mind right now,” Leia said, “But if he’s turned to the Dark Side, and the Jedi Temple is destroyed, then the balance of the Force is in grave danger.”

“What can we do?” Ana asked.

“Ben must choose his own path,” Leia said, “But the galaxy needs my brother back right now. I can’t leave the Senate—so I want you to try and find him.”

“Do you know where he may have gone?” Ana asked.

“I don’t,” Leia admitted, “But I know he never goes anywhere without R2. And there’s _always_ a way to find R2.”

“How?”

“An old friend of mine is able to track R2-D2 as a safety protocol we installed during the war with the Empire,” Leia told them, “Luke is likely on the move, so I want you to take him with you.”

“Who is it?”

Leia turned to a charging pod behind her, calling out. “Could you join us, please?”

The pod whirred open, a golden protocol droid hobbling out of the mist and towards the Daario twins. “Master Leia, you did not inform me to expect guests, I would have greeted them when they arrived per my protocol!” the droid quipped as he approached, nodding his upper body to Den and Ana, “I am C-3P0, human-cyborg relations.”

“Threepio, I need you to accompany these two on a mission,” Leia said, “I need you to help them track R2.”

“R2?” C-3P0 asked, almost indignantly, “What sort of trouble has he gotten himself into now?”

“Luke is missing,” Leia told him solemnly.

Threepio adjusted his posture, standing more upright. “Oh dear. I see.”

“We’ll bring him back safely,” Ana promised her, “And we’ll find Master Luke.”

Leia grabbed each of their hands. “May the Force be with you.”


	5. The Droid

The blue sky gave way to the black of space as they left the atmosphere of Hosnian Prime and faced out into space.

Ana was at the back of the cockpit, pulling a interfacing cord from the ship’s communications array and fixing it to the back of C-3P0’s head.

“You sure this is gonna work?” Ana asked.

“Quite sure, madame,” Threepio chirped, “Your ship’s transponder will interface with my tracking system, allowing me to locate R2-D2.”

“From anywhere in the galaxy?” Den asked, “That’s some pretty impressive tech.”

“Yes, well you see, Master Luke modified R2 to emit a deeply encrypted tracking beacon recognizable only to me,” he explained, “If you’ll just give me a moment—”

Threepio’s eyes began to flicker, making a brief whirring sounds before they snapped back to their regular luminence. “Wonderful news!” he exclaimed, “I have located R2-D2. It seems he is in the Batuu system.”

Den began plugging coordinates into the nav-computer. “Batuu? That’s pretty far out there, almost to the Unknown Regions.”

“Oh dear,” C-3P0 said, “Wherever is Master Luke going?”

The sun glinted off the tall black spires of petrified trees as the _Essence_ whizzed into the atmosphere, headed for a cluster of domes against one of the cliffs.

“Black Spire Outpost is known to be a smuggler’s haven,” C-3P0 quipped, “We should be very careful.”

Den lowered the ship into a docking bay, a Rodian dockworker directing them in. “This place is huge, can you get a more specific read on R2’s location?”

“I know he’s in the settlement somewhere, but I’m not entirely sure just where.”

“We should hit the cantina first,” Ana said.

“Ana, does now really seem like the time?”

“Not to _drink,_ idiot,” Ana retorted, “To ask if anyone has seen Luke or R2. A good barkeep will trade any information for enough credits.”

“Fine,” Den said, “But we should try to be discreet.”

Haze hung thick and the music thudded through Oga’s Cantina as Den and Ana made their way to the bar past crowds of Nikto smugglers and a few bounty hunter types.

There was a portly Blutopian behind the bar, her insect-like face coming down into five tentacles around her mouth. Ana held Den and Threepio back, going to lean on the bar. “Hold on,” she said, “I’ve got this.”

The Blutopian bartender was facing away, cleaning a glass bottle when Ana loudly cleared her throat, catching her attention. The bartender turned around, looking confused and irritated at the interruption.

“Can I help you?” she asked coarsely.

“Maybe,” Ana said, “You the owner of this fine establishment?”

“I am,” she said, “Oga Garra. And who are _you_?”

“Ana Daario, Jedi Knight.”

Oga lauged heartily. “Ha! Jedi? Aren’t you all supposed to be _dead_?”

“My brother and I studied under Luke Skywalker,” Ana said firmly—thinking this claim would gain them some authority. But Oga didn’t seem to care.

“What is it you want?” Oga asked.

“Look,” Den cut in, approaching the bar and taking a gentler tone, “We think our master was here. Our protocol droid friend here is tracking our master’s astromech and he’s somewhere in this settlement. Have you seen someone with an astromech? Older man, brown hair, mechno-arm—he would’ve come here in an X-wing.”

Oga narrowed her small, beady eyes. “Yeah, I seen him. What’s he worth to you?”

Den fished in his satchel and slapped several Republic credits on the bar. “Five-hundred credits,” he said.

Oga’s mandibles writhed in a flutter as she picked up the credits. “How very kind of you,” she said, “I didn’t see your master—I saw his X-wing take off and then I saw an astromech being taken to the droid depot.”

“But that couldn’t be him,” Ana said, aside to Den, “He would’ve had to have R2 to calculate a jump somewhere else.”

“It’s quite possible that Master Luke used R2 to calculate a jump and then ejected him from his starfighter,” C-3P0 stated, “R2 uploads his navigational data into the X-wing’s internal computer.”

Den bowed quickly to the barkeep. “Thank you, Oga Garra.”

Ana and Den walked down one of the dusty streets of Black Spire Outpost, the crowds of merchants and traders thinning out as they approached the far edge of town.

“Why would Master Luke take off without R2?” Ana asked, “He never goes anywhere without R2.”

“I don’t know,” Den said, “But he must have had a reason.”

“How awful!” Threepio moaned, hobbling quickly behind them, “If they have been separated, how will I _ever_ track Master Luke?”

“Maybe he doesn’t want you to,” Den posited, “We can still see if we can pull the nav-data off R2’s hard-drive.”

Ana stopped them by holding her arm out, pointing ahead. “Hold up.”

There was a metal door to a clay building, shut tight, with a small platoon of soldiers gathered outside. Den squinted ahead, examining the white helmets, the black filtration vent, and the stark white plastoid plates covering them.

“Is that... _stormtrooper_ armor?” Den asked, hushed, “Are they looking for R2?”

“Maybe we can just talk to them,” Ana said, “And find out.”

One of the troopers was banging on the metal door to the droid depot.

“Citizen,” he called in, “You must grant us entry or we will blast your door down!”

“Ahhh, get out of here!” an annoyed voice came from behind the door, “You bucketheads were supposed to be wiped out decades ago—this is my private establishment and you can’t do this!”

“We can,” the stormtrooper said, “And you can’t stop us.” He turned to one of his platoon-mates. “Get the pulse charges, we’re busting in.”

Ana, Den, and Threepio began to approach. The stormtroopers stood upright, gripping their blasters.

“Halt, citizen,” the patrol leader said, “Classified business. Please clear the area.”

“Nice armor,” Ana said dryly, “Where’d you get it?”

“I said _get lost,_ citizen.”

A voice came from within the door. “Who’s out there? Get these bucketheads away from my shop, they’re trying to get the droid!”

Ana gasped, drawing her lightsaber and igniting the violet blade.

“Take cover, Threepio,” Den said, pushing the protocol droid into an alley as he ignited his own blade.

“Jedi! Blast ‘em!”

The stormtroopers began a barrage of fire at Ana and Den, the two Jedi quickly whirling their lightsabers to deflect the fire, sending red blaster bolts scattering around the street. With a flick of a blade, some of the blaster bolts were ricocheted back at the troopers, hitting them and knocking them back.

“We gotta get them away from this door!” Ana told Den.

The squadron leader spoke into a comm-link as he took cover behind a pillar. “Send reinforcements, we got two Jedi!”

The main trooper squadron was dispensed, and the squadron leader came out from over, brandishing his blaster rifle in a desperate last stand. Ana extended a hand, lifting him into the air and then flung him aside, where he was impaled against Den’s blade.

“Nice, sis,” Den said, retracting the blade and letting the stormtrooper fall to the ground.

“Yeah, not too bad,” Ana smiled back before going to the door and knocking, “They’re gone, you can open up!”

“Who are you?” the voice asked.

“We’re Jedi Knights,” Den responded, “We’ve come here under orders from Senator Leia Organa to retrieve the droid of out master, Luke Skywalker. Do you have his R2 unit in there?”

The door opened, revealing a young woman with dark skin and blue tips around the bottom of her short dark hair. “You... Leia Organa sent you?”

“Yes. I’m Den Daario, and this is my sister Ana. And the Senator’s droid—”

The protocol droid wobbled up behind them, emerging from his hiding place. “I am C-3P0, human-cyborg relations!”

“I’m Vi Moradi,” the young woman said, “I’ve been expecting someone to come get—”

She was interrupted by a series of high-pitched beeping noises as R2 rolled himself into view from a darkened corner of the droid workshop. C-3P0 immediately raised his arms in excitement.

“R2-D2! My, how relieved I am to see you!”

R2 was wobbling back and forth in place, excitedly beeping.

“Did you see Master Luke?” Ana asked Vi.

“No,” she said, “I found this droid rolling out of the hangar bay—he seemed distressed. He told me he needed a safe place to wait for someone to come retrieve him, so I brought him to my workshop.”

“Luke left him behind on purpose, then,” Ana said, “He wanted us to find R2, but didn’t want us to find _him._ ”

“Wait,” Vi said, “You’re telling me this droid belongs to _Luke Skywalker_?”

Ana looked at R2 sadly. “I guess not anymore.”

R2 beeped in quick succession, turning his monitor towards C-3P0.

“Excuse me, but R2 tells me he has a message from Master Luke,” Threepio said, “But he is only authorized to play it for Master Leia.”

“We should get back to the ship and arrange a rendezvous with her, then,” Den said, “She’ll want that message.”

“Thank you, Vi,” Ana said, “We’ll be sure to inform the Senator what you did for us.”

“Hey,” Vi smiled, “I’m just glad you came along to get rid of those bucketheads.”

“Had you seen soldiers like that before?” Den asked, “They looked like stormtroopers but—their armor was upgraded. It looked more advanced than the old Imperial suits.”

Vi sighed, her voice lowering. “There’s whispers of a fleet in the Unknown Regions,” she said, “We get traders coming across the Borderlands telling us of entire worlds that have been subjugated.”

Den and Ana exchanged a glance. “You think Senator Organa knows about this?” Ana asked.

“I don’t know,” Den said, “But we should let her know. Thanks again, Vi.”

A bank of clouds had gathered over Black Spire Outpost as it began to drizzle, and the _Essence_ blazed its forward headlamps as it lifted from the spaceport.

Ana fired up the holoprojector as Den began to gently ascend out of the atmosphere. Leia appeared in the blue shimmer.

“Have you found him?” she asked.

“No, Senator,” Ana said, “But we have R2. He says he has a message from Master Luke, for your eyes only.”

Leia’s expression was grave. “Meet me on D’Qar,” she said, “I don’t want to bring R2 back to the capital—too many eyes. I’ll send you the coordinates.”

“Yes, Senator.”

As Leia blinked away, Den looked to Ana. “You weren’t going to tell her we had a run-in with stormtroopers?”

“She knows what it means if we have R2 and not Luke,” Ana said, “Let her process that. We’ll have a chance to speak with her soon enough.”

Den trained his eyes back on the cloudbank as the _Essence_ began to breach it and enter into space.

“Do you have her coordinates?” Den asked.

“Yes,” Ana said, “They’re plugged in, ready to jump when—” she trailed off as she gazed ahead into open space—there was an enormous Star Destroyer directly in their path, its bow trained towards them.

“That’s not good,” Den said.

“Quick, make the jump!”

“They’re right in our path, we’ll be blown to smithereens!” Den said, “I’m gonna have to get around them and recalculate.”

“You can’t go up against a Star Destroyer!” Ana protested.

“Well, I’m gonna have to.”

Den quickly diverted power to the engines, kicking them into overdrive as he barrel-rolled the ship to avoid the barrage of green blaster-fire raining towards them.

“Ana, quick—divert power from the engines to the shields and get in the turret!”

“On it!” Ana quickly flipped the switched on the back of the cockpit wall before running to the center of the cabin. She opened a hatch, dropping into a seat that sat in a glass dome on the bottom of the ship. She took hold of the yoke and revolved the cannon around, her seat whirling around with it.

Den focused, quickly passing under the Star Destroyer as he avoided their fire. DK came squealing into the cockpit, alerted by the noise.

“DK, I need you to recalculate our jump to D’Qar, quickly!”

DK beeped in affirmation and plugged his scomp-link into the dashboard, quickly wrenching it around as he whirred.

Ana had the turret gun trained back towards the massive exhaust ports on the Star Destroyer when she began to see TIE-fighters drop from the capital ship.

“Den, we’ve got fighters!” she called.

“Hold them off!” he said, “We’ll be out of here in just a minute!”

Ana began firing, her whole body being thudded by the power of the blaster gun. The targeting computer struggled to fit its brackets around one of the TIE-fighters, but it finally lit up green and Ana was able to fire a barrage, shooting the wing off of the fighter and sending it barreling in flames into another one of them.

“Hell yeah, got one!”

“Well get another!” Den called back nervously as the ship’s targeting sensors began to sound an alarm, “They’re locking a missile onto us!”

Ana fired, managing to hit one more—but not disabling it. They seemed to emerge out of the darkness like a swarm of wart-hornets. “There’s too many of them!”

Den groaned. “Fine, hold on!”

He yanked the throttle back as hard as he could, causing the _Essence_ to buck up vertically as it looped around to make an attack run. Now he was facing the squadron—the system’s three suns glinting off the TIE-fighters’ glossy black exterior.

“DK, how’re we looking?”

DK blooped impatiently as he quickly calculated the jump. The ship thudded as blaster fire hit the shields—on the dashboard, the ring indicating the shield power was beginning to deplete.

“What’re you doing, Den?” Ana called, “We’re losing the deflector shields!”

“I hope this works...” Den flicked a switch on the yoke, the targeting computer whirring to life as it began to blink onto the TIE-fighters one by one. It blinked every few seconds as Den tried to hold the squadron off with the blaster cannons.

“Den we’re gonna get back in range of that Destroyer!”

“Just hold on...”

Four locked... five locked...

A bead of sweat ran down Den’s forehead. “Come on, come on...”

And—six locked.

Den mashed a button, sending missiles flying from the bottom in rapid succession. They whirred in a flock through the air before diverting paths, each one giving chase to a different fighter. The squadron’s formation was broken as they all dove to dodge the missiles, but they were too fast. Fighters began to be consumed in balls of flame as the _Essence_ ’s tracking missiles made short work of them. Den pulled up, quickly turning the ship away before it got back in range of the Star Destroyer.

DK bleeped excitedly.

“Punch it!” Ana called.

Den reached overhead, yanking the lever—the black of space melted into the blue of hyperspace and the _Essence_ blinked out of sight.


	6. The Hunt

Ana and Den waited patiently with C-3P0 in the command center of the old Rebel base on D’Qar. Leia had taken R2 in a separate chamber to view her brother’s message. When she came back, she had a somber look on her face.

Ana and Den stood to greet her. “Did you find out where Master Luke has gone?”

Leia pursed her lips. “No,” she said, “He was vague. I don’t believe he wants to be found right now.”

Ana furrowed her brow. “But—we _need_ Master Luke back. The _galaxy_ does.”

“I know,” Leia said, and then gave a weak assuring smile to her, “But we’ll find him eventually. I know we will.”

“What about the nav data on R2?” Den asked, “His X-wing wouldn’t be able to calculate a jump on its own.”

Leia shook her head. “Wiped off. Or encrypted. Either way—R2 has entered low-power mode. I don’t think he’ll be powering back up.”

C-3P0’s upper carriage drooped towards the ground a bit. “Oh dear...”

“He must have left a hint,” Ana insisted.

“From what he said, I believe he went in search of the first Jedi Temple.”

“Wait—so Ossus?” Den asked.

“No,” Leia responded, “After the war, he traveled the galaxy seeking artifacts and sacred texts. He discovered that the very first temple was founded on an ocean planet in the Unknown Regions.”

“It must be ancient,” Ana said.

“So ancient it didn’t appear on any modern star-charts,” Leia said, “But he must have found it.”

“How?” Den asked.

Leia thought a moment. “There was a devotee of the Force—not a Jedi—who helped him. Lor San Tekka. He may be the only one who knows where Luke is.”

“I remember him,” Ana said, “He used to visit the Temple.”

“Last I knew, he was on Kashyyyk,” Leia said, “Seeking out the knowledge of the Origin Tree from Chieftain Tarrful.” She stepped closer to them, taking a breath and closing her eyes. “Look—you two have already done so much. But it would mean the world to me if you could seek out Tarrful and find Tekka. I simply cannot leave my post at the Senate.”

Den began to speak, but Ana interrupted him—“Of course we will.”

“Senator,” Den interjected, “There’s something else you should know. On Batuu—we got into a skirmish with some stormtroopers. And then getting off-world, we were ambushed by some sort of Star Destroyer—different model than the Imperial ones.”

Leia sighed, looking at them with a dire expression. “There is something at work in the Unknown Regions,” she said, “I’m not entirely sure what yet. But if they’re coming as far as Batuu—then they’re gathering strength. I will take your word back to the Senate. Be careful out there.”

“Thank you, Senator,” Ana said, “We will.”

Ana boarded the _Essence,_ heading towards the cockpit.

“Hey, Den, are we ready to make the jump to Kashyyyk?”

She opened the doors to the cockpit, where Den was standing directly in front of her, his arms crossed.

“I’m not going to Kashyyyk,” he said flatly.

Ana looked at him with confusion. “Why not?”

“I didn’t ask for this mission,” he said, “With everything that’s happened—I still stand by what I did that night. My intention was to leave the Jedi behind. And I think that’s Luke’s intention too. He doesn’t _want_ to be found, Ana.”

“He must be hurting,” Ana said, “His own nephew—”

“His nephew and his goons are still out there, looking for us, and eventually they’ll find us,” he said, “And if we’re tracking Luke, we’ll lead the Knights of Ren right to them.”

“Den, Leia _told_ us—”

“I don’t answer to her,” Den said firmly, “It’s time for us to go our own way. Lie low.”

Ana shook her head. “Den, we’re _it,_ ” she pleaded, “We could be the _last two Jedi._ Does that mean nothing to you?”

“Face it, Ana,” Den said, “The Jedi are done.”

“We owe it to Luke,” Ana replied, “We just do.”

Den searched her eyes, sensing the desperate pleading within her. His sister was the most stubborn person he knew, and he knew she wouldn’t budge. He could drag her to any remote corner of the galaxy—she wasn’t going to give up on this.

“Fine,” Den said, “We can at least go to Kashyyyk. But if it’s a dead end, then that’s it. No more. We go our own way.”

Ana sighed. “Deal.”

Den eased up on the _Essence’_ s yoke as he skidded the sea and headed for the large landmass ahead—silhouetted against distant dark storm-clouds was an enormous tree—even higher than the mountaintops around it.

“That’s gotta be it,” Ana said, “You can land at the top, right?”

Den glanced over the scanners. “No, we’re going to have to climb up ourselves,” he said, “No landing pad at the top—plus, according to Wookiee custom you have to make the climb on foot.”

“Wookiee custom can kiss my ass,” Ana grumbled.

Ana grumbled as she swatted a clump of vines out of her pathway, trekking forward into the humid jungles.

“You sure this is the right way?” she called to Den.

Den was trekking ahead of her, DK perched happily on his shoulder. “Yeah, this is it. To get up the tree, we’ve got to get right up under it.”

“How much furth—blegh!” she spat as she met a faceful of vines, drawing her lightsaber in frustration and slashing at the bramble, sending the singed edges sizzling out of her path.

“Don’t do that!” Den chided, “This whole forest is alive and connected. You don’t want to piss it off.”

“Piss it _off?_ ”

“Can’t you feel that?” Den asked, “This place is strong with the Force. Everything is connected to the tree.”

Ana gazed up and ahead. The sprawling canopy covered the sky above her, seemingly miles up into the air. “I guess. Since when are you the expert on this?”

“I’ve read about the Origin Tree,” he said, “Wookiee warriors must make the pilgrimage to the top as a right of passage. The whole forest is part of the Tree. It’s said that there’s a giant flying beast that protects it—known as a Shyyyo bird.”

“A shyyy-who what?” Ana responded, “You’re making that up.”

“They’re supposed to bring good luck, but seeing one is very rare,” Den said, “So I guess you’ll just have to believe me. Some of us _read stuff_ as part of our Jedi training, you know. It’s not all swinging lightsabers and lifting rocks.”

“It is if you’re _good_ at that stuff.”

Den scoffed. “Shut up.”

Somewhere distant in the forest, the buzz of an engine droned through the trees. Ana and Den stopped dead in their tracks.

“You hear that?” Den asked, hushed.

“Sounded like speeders.”

Den continued to listen, his hand hovering above the saber on his hip. The droning sound got closer.

“Quick, hide!” Den said. They both ducked into bushes on either side of the jungle path, covering themselves with vines. DK scurried into the brambles off the path. The engine noise got louder as Ana was able to make out the shape of a speeder whizzing by, with black boots pressed against the stirrups.

They passed, but then came to a stop. Ana tried to hush her breathing as she watched two figures in black making their way down the path, the movement of their heads indicating a darting, searching scan around the trees. They were two of the Knights of Ren, the ghouls that had pursued them on Hoth.

Den closed his eyes, reaching out to Ana through the Force—though he couldn’t see her he was trying to send her a signal. Sometimes, in rare moments, they had been able to communicate without words. Luke Skywalker had explained that this happened due to their siblinghood—a similar bond existed between him and Leia.

The two Knights trudged ahead, their backs facing the twins. Ana felt an impulse from Den, and lept from the bush, lightsaber brandished.

“Aaahhhh!” she struck from above, her violet blade clashing against the knight’s cleaver. He swung it to parry, knocking her back onto the ground. Quickly kicking her legs to right herself, she took another horizontal swipe towards him, but again was blocked by the large, flat blade.

Den met the other one’s scythe to the same effect. The weapons were made of something like beskar, able to withstand the heat of a lightsaber. After a few quick attacks blocked by Den, he thrust an arm out trying to push the knight back. But he only lunged forward, stamping his left boot into the ground, staying in place. Den took a breath—these knights were strong with the Force.

Ana struggled to gain ground in her fight, slashing again and again to no avail. Her stamina was running out. Den too was just getting pushed further back, until he was pinned—his back flush to a broad tree trunk. The knight swung his scythe back over his head, preparing to make a killing blow. Den quickly dropped his saber into his left hand, spinning it back-handed to cut through the tree behind him. The knight was distracted as he looked up, watching the tree lurch towards him. Den quickly tumbled out of the way, and the tree fell on the knight, pinning him down.

Ana continued to slash overhead, trying to push past the enormous metal blade of the cleaver. She saw the tree coming from overhead, but the canopy was poised to come down on them instead of the heavy trunk. Both combatants slashed their weapons above, clearing the branches away as the leafy mass rained down on them.

The knight grumbled under his helmet, charging her. Ana stood her ground, preparing for the heavy blow of his weapon, but Den came running down the trunk of the fallen tree, leaping overhead and slashing his lightsaber across the knight’s back. He screamed in pain and went down to the ground. DK emerged from his hiding spot and perched back on Den’s shoulder.

Den locked eyes with Ana. “The speeders!”

They ran for them, hopping on them and whizzing down the forest path towards the base of the Origin Tree.

Side by side, Ana rode up next to her brother. “That’s them,” she said, “Ben’s gotta be with them.”

“We need to get to Tarfful before he can.”

“How?” Ana asked, “They have that ship and they’ll just shuttle to the top. You and your Wookiee customs—”

Den looked ahead. “Wait, stop your speeder!”

They came to a skidding halt, Den peering through the trees to see a large white mass—gently raising and lowering with heavy breathing.

Ana recognized that in the clearing ahead, there was an enormous white-feathered creature.

“What _is_ that?” Ana asked.

Den was speechless, his eyes lighting up. “It’s the shyyyo bird.”

He proceeded into the clearing, Ana close behind. The bird stirred, opening a red eye and seeing them. It stood up on its short legs, flapping its wings and making a loud screeching noise.

“I don’t think it likes us!” Ana said.

“It can tell you’re scared of it,” Den said, “Here.” He gently nudged his sister in front of him allowing her to approach the beast slowly. She held her hand out, breathing steadily as the bird lowered its black-horned head to her. The creature groaned as she placed a hand flat upon its forehead, breathing with it as the groans subsided to something resembling cooing.

“There we go,” Ana coaxed, “Good bird.”

Somewhere in the distance, boots tramping along the forest floor could be heard. The shyyyo bird shot its head up in alertness and cawed, distressed by the sound.

“Those men are after us,” Den said, “Can you help us get to the top of the Origin Tree? We need to see Tarfful.”

“Den, it can’t understand—”

“Shh.”

The bird lowered its head to lay its thick neck along the ground, looking at them with its red eyes blinking expectantly.

“I think... I think we’re being offered a ride,” Den said.

“Are you insane?”

“We need to get to the top before the Knights of Ren can,” Den insisted, “Get on.” He was already swinging a leg over, taking hold of a tuft of white feathers.

Ana huffed nervously, getting on the bird behind Den and grabbing hold of him. She grabbed on tight as the bird began to flap its wings, lifting off the ground and gliding above the treetops. Above the jungle, they were amazed at the sight—the misty green mountaintops formed a ring around the enormous Origin Tree as lush forests spread over the planet’s surface.

“Wow...” Den breathed, the wind rustling through his hair. This was the feeling of freedom he had craved so often at the Jedi Temple—a feeling of infinite possibility and promise of adventure. He had been too closed in with Luke Skywalker. Out in the galaxy— _that’s_ where he could truly feel the Force connecting all living things.

Ana surveyed the forest below. She knew Ben was on Kashyyyk. He had to be. She could sense his presence—but it was clouded in a shroud of darkness and pain.

The shyyyo bird slowed in velocity as it approached the top of the tree, landing on a branch wide enough to be a platform. It lowered its neck allowing the twins to get off. Den rubbed the bird’s hard-shelled head right between its eyes.

“Thank you,” he said, “We’ll keep those warriors away from your tree.”

The bird cooed in acknowledgment and then took off, heading for the horizon.

Ana looked up the branch path, seeing it heading towards an opening on top of the tree.

“Come on, this way.”

Den followed her and they were greeted by two Wookiee guards with bow-casters as they entered. At the end of the clearing, surrounded by branches and leaves, an enormous Wookiee with black markings and a tan face sat on a stump.

“Wrooooagh arrrgh,” the chieftain growled, standing to meet them.

“Chieftain Tarfful,” Den said, “My name is Den Daario. This is my twin sister Ana. We are Jedi Knights, students of Luke Skywalker.”

“Gaaarghh, wroooagh guggh!”

Ana’s eyes darted to Den. “Any idea what he’s saying?” she asked hushed.

“He says we are welcome here,” Den said, “The shyyyo bird escorting us tells him we’re friends to his tribe.”

“Since when do you know Shyriiwook?”

Den smirked. “Guess if I’m not good at fighting I should be good at _something_.”

“Gruuughh woooorrbbhhh?”

“We come seeking Lor San Tekka,” Den said, “Our master has gone missing, and we believe he is the only person who can find him.”

“Gaaaargh!”

Den looked to Ana. “He was here!” he turned back to Tarfful, “Do you know where he went?”

“Gaaarghhh, wraaaagh—”

Den was busy in his mind, translating the coarse grunts of Shyriiwook into Basic, but he was interrupted by the sound of a ship whirring up above the tree. A transport was hovering above them, its engines groaning under the immense power of its modified thrusters.

Ana’s blood ran cold. “He’s here.”

The laser cannons trained on the Wookiee guards and began firing. They tucked and rolled, training their bow-casters on the ship, but the blasts did little against its hull. With a few more shots from the _Night Buzzard,_ the guards were disposed of.

The front door began to lower on the ship, revealing Kylo Ren standing in the entrance, adorned in a hooded cloak and his new battle mask. He jumped from there, landing on the clearing with immense impact.

“Wroooooaaaagggghh!” Tarfful roared at him, drawing his weapon. But Kylo Ren was quick to dodge the chieftain’s blow, thrusting his crimson blade into Tarrful, impaling him clean through.

“No!” Ana cried, watching the chieftain fall dead to the ground. Their last link to Skywalker. She quickly ignited her saber, prompting Den to do the same. They stood, side by side, sabers ready to strike.

Kylo stood menacingly, the dead Wookiee at his feet, his blade crackling against the ground.

“Now,” he said, “Time for the Jedi to be exterminated.”


	7. The Master

Ana and Den’s blades seemed to hum in unison, as Kylo Ren’s seared with rage.

“Don’t do this, Ben,” Ana said in a steady voice.

“Ben is dead!” he snapped, his face red with rage, “And now, I will erase the lies of Luke Skywalker from the galaxy. Beginning with his remaining students.”

Den clenched his jaw. “You’re a traitor.”

Kylo Ren exhaled in something almost resembling a laugh. “Says a deserter.” Den’s face went white. “Yes, I know. You only survived because you were leaving. Because you felt you had failed.”

“Den,” Ana said, “He’s baiting you.”

“You were running away,” Kylo continued, “But you will never outrun your own _weakness._ ”

Den cried out in rage as he charged with his lightsaber brandished, chopping at the newly-turned Kylo Ren with his bright teal blade. Kylo quickly parried with his own blade.

Ana came charging in to help, but Kylo simply held a hand out and stopped her dead in her tracks. Den uppercut and as Kylo dodged back, he singed through a layer of his cloak, leaving burning embers of fabric drifting in the air off of him. As Kylo was distracted, Ana was able to break his Force hold and advance on him. Her purple blade met his above his head. They held for a moment until Ana’s grip slipped.

Den and Ana were both swinging at him, but Kylo Ren was quicker, blocking each blow. Eventually he thrust his hands out, sending both Den and Ana skidding back. Ana rose to her feet, regripping her saber. Kylo glared at her.

“I made you an offer on Hoth,” he said, “Come willingly. And you may be allowed to live.”

Den lowered his brow. Ana hadn’t told him of this offer.

“How about a counter-offer,” Ana quipped, “You quit this. You realize who you are. And _I_ allow you to live.”

Kylo sighed in contempt. “You don’t _know_ who I am.”

Ana looked at him, her eyes watering, pleading with him. “Yes, I _do._ ”

Kylo’s lip quivered, looking at her with a bewildered look on his face. “I wish you did,” he said sadly, “But you don’t.”

Ana opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, Den came leaping from overhead, about to strike Kylo from directly above. Kylo thrust a hand out, sending Den flying towards the edge of the platform, where the tree dropped off to the forest floor hundreds of meters below.

“No!” Ana cried. She threw her lightsaber at him, sending it spinning through the air like a disc towards him. She looked to Den, seeing where he was over the edge and sent her other hand out, holding him in place hundreds of feet above the ground. Where he levitated, Den gulped as he looked below him, no ground anywhere close to him. At the same time, Kylo flattened his own palm, stopping Ana’s lightsaber in place. Its violet blade pointed towards him—if it flew any further, it would impale him, surely killing him.

A sinister grin crossed Kylo’s face. Ana was torn, her power divided. She was pushing the lightsaber against Kylo’s push with one hand, and with the other hand she was holding Den in the air. If she focused all her power on killing Kylo, she would drop Den. If she saved Den, the lightsaber would fall and Kylo would be spared.

“And now you must make your choice,” Kylo said, “Like I did.”

Ana’s eyes darted.

“Go ahead,” Kylo taunted, smirking, “Strike me down. You obviously hate me.”

“I...” Ana was straining, “I don’t _hate_ you.” Her eyes focused on her blade, humming in mid-air, caught between her and Kylo’s power.

“Ana, kill him!” Den shouted, his eyes filled with fear looking down at the fall, “You have to kill him!”

“You heard your brother,” Kylo said, “Free him from his weakness. Strike me down. Lose us _both._ ”

Tears were forming in Ana’s eyes. “No.” She pulled Den back onto the platform, allowing her lightsaber to fall to the ground.

Kylo snickered. “That’s what I thought.” He clenched both of his hands, lifting Den and Ana into the air, unable to move. The _Night Buzzard_ lowered, the ramp connecting to the platform as two of the knights came to handcuff Ana and Den and lead them onto the ship.

“Don’t worry. I won’t kill you,” he said, following them onto the ship, “I’ll leave that for Snoke to decide.”

Ana and Den squinted as the door opened, the light shocking to their eyes after a long ride in a cell through hyperspace.

They looked around. They were in an enormous garden, green and blue plants forming a lush biosphere under a octagonally-patterned glass ceiling. Beyond it was the blackness of space, with metal rings orbiting slowly above.

“What is this place?” Ana asked, “This isn’t... a planet.”

“This station was built by those trying to hold back the dark,” Kylo said, leading them through. The _Night Buzzard_ was departing the docking bay behind them. “But the dark persisted. It’s what happens when you deny the nature of things.”

Den panned his gaze across the plants—black roots had wrapped their way around many of the trees, and the soil was littered with ancient bones of unrecognizable creatures. There was a dark energy in this place, but also a sense of... serenity.

As they came over a bridge, they saw an abnormally tall figure, dressed in green robes. He turned to them, revealing a twisted, pale face.

“Ah,” he said, his voice deep and gravelly, “More students of Luke Skywalker.”

Den glowered up at him. “You must be Snoke.”

Snoke’s mouth coiled into a demented smirk. “My new apprentice has told you about me, then.”

“Your apprentice?” Ana asked, then her eyes went wide with realization, “You’re a Sith.”

Snoke laughed darkly. “Oh my dear girl,” he growled, “Not _quite._ I am _more_ than Sith.”

“You turned Ben to the Dark Side,” Ana spat.

“Kylo Ren _chose_ this,” Snoke sneered, “He _came_ to me. I’ve been mentoring him from afar since he was a boy.”

Den lowered his brow. “Where did you come from?”

“A forgotten corner of the galaxy,” Snoke said, “Far from the eyes of your wretched Republic.”

“What do you want from us?” Den asked frankly.

“So quick to the point,” Snoke said, “Very well. I want to know what you know. _Why_ were the two of you on Kashyyyk?”

“That’s none of your concern,” Ana snapped. Snoke looked at her ruefully.

“You’re beginning to annoy me, _girl_.” Snoke snarled, clenching his fist and closing an invisible hand around her airway, causing her to gag and gasp as she struggled for air. “You’d be wise to comply.” He released her just as quickly, leaving her hunched over and grasping her throat. He turned to Den, who was trying to wear a brave face, but the intense fear in his eyes betrayed him.

“I’m not scared of you,” Den said.

Snoke laughed heartily. “Oh, of _course_ you are,” he said, “You’re even more cowardly than your sister. But also wiser. If it had been up to you, you would have gone into hiding. Avoided the Knights of Ren.”

Ana looked to her brother, and then to Snoke. “How did you know that?”

“A mind is an easy thing to unlock,” Snoke said, stepping closer to Den, bringing a gnarled hand up beside his head, “Though the Jedi are able to deceive using the Force, only those strong with the Dark Side can reach in. Find out their deepest thoughts.”

Den was breathing heavily, a searing pain in his head as Snoke invaded his mind.

“You spoke with Leia Organa,” Snoke said, probing Den’s thoughts, “She sent you searching... for her _brother._ ”

Kylo’s eyes went wide. “But master—I thought I—”

Snoke held his other hand up to silence him. “Silence, Ren. I told you to temper your expectations. Your uncle will not go down easily.”

Ana looked to Kylo, relishing the humiliated pout painted across his face. Her lips tightened into a wicked smile. He thought he had killed Luke. His first act as an agent of the Dark Side had resulted in failure.

“Get... _out_ of my _head,_ ” Den hissed, his breathing labored and his eyes squeezed tight. The mind probe was getting deeper.

“Den, resist it. He can’t know,” Ana pleaded.

“I...” Den strained, “Tekka—we were sent after Tekka.”

“Den, no!”

“Silence!” Snoke bellowed at Ana before turning back to Den, “Tell me.”

“Skywalker disappeared. Leia thinks he’s seeking out the first Jedi Temple. He located it, years ago with the help of Lor San Tekka,” Den’s mouth was spilling all the information, though his brain was screaming at him to stop. “Tarfful—Tekka was with Tarfful, but he left. Tarfful knew.”

“The Wookiee chieftain,” Snoke ruminated, then turning to Kylo, “The one you _killed._ ”

Kylo was white as a sheet. “I—I didn’t know.”

“Your arrogance betrays you, Ren,” Snoke said through clenched teeth, “You lost our chance at your uncle.”

“I—I’m sorry, master.”

“I’ll deal with _you_ later,” Snoke spat, “Uncuff these two. They’re not going anywhere.”

Ana sat in a quiet corner of the garden. Her legs were crossed on the ground, her hands open with her palms facing up. She struggled to meditate, but as a tear made its way from under her closed eyelid and rolled down her cheek, she was losing her grip.

She was trapped. Her weapon taken. Their ship light-years away. Held prisoner to a twisted Dark Side user—one relishing in the fall of the Jedi. And Ben—Kylo—was trapped with her. Trapped in his own mind. In his own corrupted delusion of who he thought he was.

From where she sat, she sensed a presence behind her.

“What do _you_ want?”

Kylo looked down at her. He could hear the quavering in her voice. “You’re scared.” Ana turned around and looked at him indignantly. “It’s okay. I’m scared too.”

Ana stood and looked at him, surprised at this admission. He sounded like Ben again. The same Ben she had spent so many silent nights on the seaside cliffs by the Temple with, confiding in each other. He talked to her differently than anyone else.

“Scared of _what_?” she asked him genuinely, searching his eyes.

“For all those years, I was lost,” he said, “I felt trapped. By my family. By the temple. By all of these—expectations. Ana, I’ve been _saved_ from that.”

“The Dark Side, though?” Ana said, “This is _wrong_.”

“The Jedi way was limiting,” Kylo told her, “Our path was narrow. Think of what we could do—operating to our full potential.”

“ _We?_ ” Ana asked, taken aback, “Who’s _we_?”

“You’re the only one,” Kylo began, “Who ever _saw_ me. You understood. The rest of them—they only saw what they _wanted_ me to be. You never wanted anything from me.”

Ana gave him a warning look. “Don’t do this.”

“I’m asking you to join me,” Kylo said, “Snoke will be willing to spare you if you’re willing to open your mind.”

“And Den?”

“Your brother will be given the same chance you are,” he said.

Ana looked to the ground, her lips pursed, deep in thought.

“Well?” Kylo coaxed, after a moment.

She met his eyes. “You talk about no one seeing you,” she said, “You’re right. I see you. But you can’t see _yourself._ ”

Kylo sighed. “Get some rest.” And with that, he left her in the garden clearing, staring out at a black sky.

In a small dark chamber, Snoke knelt in front of a holo-projector.

A sinister voice transmitted in. “Yes?”

“I have captured the twin Jedi,” Snoke said, “I sense much conflict in Kylo Ren. Particularly about the girl.”

The hooded face on the holo-projector twisted his lips into a sneer. “Such feelings can make one... _easy_ to manipulate.”

“The boy can be broken,” Snoke said, “The girl—her will is strong.”

“She will learn,” the hooded figure said, “Her brother can be used to turn her.”

“So I should spare them then?”

“Yes,” the hooded figure smiled nefariously, “They may be of use to us.”

Snoke bowed his head. “Yes, Lord Sidious.”

After they had been allowed to rest, Den and Ana were brought back before Snoke who glowered sinisterly at them as they stood before him.

“I’ve chosen to spare you,” he said, “In exchange for your servitude.”

“Great,” Ana scoffed, “What a deal. Deal of the _millennium._ ”

“Do not fear,” Snoke said, “You will not be slaves. You will be allowed free reign on the galaxy. Your own ship. Your weapons. You will have your freedom _and_ an opportunity to be aligned with the new power in the galaxy.”

“What are you talking about?” Den asked.

“I have many allies you don’t know about yet,” Snoke said, “But that will come in time. All you must do for now is pass a simple trial.”

“We don’t need to prove anything to _you,_ ” Ana spat mockingly.

Den shot her a look. _Shut up,_ he was trying to say to her.

“To be accepted into the Knights of Ren,” Snoke said, “Kylo had to make one _good_ kill. Not the simple slaughter of the Jedi that opposed him. But a _good_ kill.”

“What, so you want us to join the Knights of Ren?” Den asked.

“No, no,” Snoke said, “I have bigger plans for you.”

“So what—we need to make our good kill? What constitutes a ‘good’ kill?”

“That’s for you to find out,” Snoke said, “But I know where you can find it. You will travel to the planet Nirauan. There is a powerful amulet there. You will fetch it for me. When you find it, you will be left alone with your opportunity at your good kill.”

For the first time, Den saw this as an opportunity. What Snoke was promising was freedom. And if he was as powerful as he said he was—then this could be a boon. 

Ana looked sadly to Kylo, who was averting his eyes, avoiding his gaze. But then she looked to Snoke, who was awaiting her answer.

“Well?” he coaxed her, “Will you prove your worth and join me? Or will you die?”

Den shot her a terse glance, urging her to accept. “This is the only way, Ana,” he said.

She swallowed hard. “I accept.”

“Good,” Snoke said, “You will leave at once. Give them their weapons.”

Kylo had both of their saber hilts in his black gloved hands, and held them out to them. The fact that Snoke was rearming them in his presence displayed an immense amount of trust. Or an abundance of confidence. Den wasn’t sure which.

Ana felt her fingers wrap around the cold dura-steel. She wanted so badly to drive it through Snoke. But between Kylo’s conflicted soul and Den’s pleading glare, she was unable to act on that impulse. She knew she had to see this through.

“We’ll return with the amulet and our kill,” Ana told Snoke, “And then—we will serve you.”

Snoke smiled. His plan was in motion at last.


	8. The Trial

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there's smut in this one for all y'all who've been waiting

Ana and Den watched the shuttle take off, the force from the thrusters rustling through their hair.

In the cockpit, Snoke stood close behind Kylo Ren, who was gripping the yoke.

“Land nearby,” Snoke instructed.

“What is the significance of this amulet?” Kylo asked, folding the shuttle wings into landing position.

“The amulet is not what matters,” Snoke said, “This is just a test for them. We will go observe.”

Den looked up the hillside. Nirauan was covered in pine trees, the terrain rugged with the hillsides dramatically sloping into sheer rockfaces towering into the sky. Straight up from them was a cave opening, carved into the cliffside.

“That must be the cave,” Den said.

“This is too easy,” Ana responded, beginning to trudge up the hill behind him, “If he knew exactly where this amulet was, why hasn’t he gotten it himself?”

“I’m not sure,” Den said, “Could be someone guarding it. That he needs us to kill.”

Ana tsked. “Feels like a trap to me.”

“We don’t have a choice, Ana,” Den said, “Let’s just get there.”

The sunlight was pouring in the entrance of the cave as Ana and Den slowly paced in, the sound of dripping water echoing through the stony chamber.

Ana scanned the cave. “It’s empty.”

“Do you feel that, though?” Den asked, “This cave—it’s a Force nexus.”

“I feel it,” Ana agreed, “Check this out.” She stepped to the middle of the chamber to a raised stone platform. There was a circular indent in the middle of it, with a thin line engraved in a V going down the top of the pillar.

Den approached. “The amulet was here,” he said, “But it’s gone.”

“This makes no sense,” Ana said, “Did Snoke get it already? Why are we here?”

She began to survey the outer wall of the cave, feeling at it with her hands. “Maybe there’s some sort of secret passage we’re not seeing.”

Den looked around. There was no amulet. And this place was just a cave. He thought about Snoke’s words—that they would be left alone with their opportunity for a good kill. And then he sent them to a secluded planet, to an empty cave.

Ana continued to examine the cave walls, but stopped dead in her tracks when she heard a lightsaber blast to life, the sound echoing off the cave walls. Turning around slowly, she saw her brother standing at the opposite end of the cave, his teal blade extending down from his right hand.

“Den,” she said cautiously, “What are you doing?”

“Don’t you see, Ana?” he asked, “Snoke sent us here for our good kill. Look around. You see anyone else?”

Ana’s stomach dropped. “Den—just, let’s talk about this for a second.”

“What better way to have us earn our freedom?” Den posited, “Then to have us kill our own twin.”

A lump formed in Ana’s throat. He knew Den was right. _This_ was Snoke’s test. Only one of them would be able to join him. And this would decide who was worthy. “There’s got to be another way.”

“I _told_ you we should’ve run!” Den snapped at her, “ _You_ got us into this!”

“How could I have known it would come to this?” Ana retorted.

“You were so desperate to find Luke. To save Ben. And now you’ve lost me my chance at a real life,” Den told her.

“I’m not going to kill you, Den,” Ana stated.

Den sighed. “No,” he said, “You _won’t._ ”

He extended a hand, pulling her towards him, his lightsaber poised to impale her, but Ana ignited her lightsaber as she was dragged across the cave floor, bashing against Den’s blade and knocking him off target.

“Den, stop!”

Den was infuriated, swinging at her as she just continued to block his blows. She wasn’t attacking back. “There’s got to be another way!”

“You brought this on us!” Den shouted angrily against the sizzling of his blade against Ana’s. The teal and purple glow was dancing off the walls of the cave as the sun set outside, the light streaming in to the cave entrance growing ever dimmer.

Ana deftly spun her saber, deflecting each of his blows. She had been watching him train for years. She was able to predict his every move. It’s like she always told him at the Temple. _Too predictable._

But Den wasn’t relenting. He was unleashing a fury, his blade cutting clean through a stalactite hanging from the ceiling as he swung overhead at Ana, her knuckles white as she gripped the hilt of her weapon, desperately blocking his attacks.

“This isn’t you, Den. Snoke is tricking us into the Dark Side,” Ana pleaded.

“Dark Side, Light Side,” Den scoffed, “It’s all the same to me. I was the only one with the foresight to leave the Jedi Order. I deserve another chance.”

Den grunted as Ana parried him with a quick upwards stroke, interrupting his rhythm and staggering him. “I don’t want to hurt you,” Ana said.

“Fine,” Den hissed, “Then _give up._ Luke—Ben—everything you cared about is _gone._ Give up.”

Ana clenched her teeth. “No, it’s _not._ ”

“What—you think you can redeem Kylo Ren?” Den taunted, “You really are hopeless.”

A few more swings. The bashing of plasma blades created a cacophony bouncing off the cave ceiling.

“A Jedi doesn’t give up,” Ana said, her anger mounting.

“If you’re too stupid to know when you’re beat,” Den sneered, “Then you’ll die like the rest.”

He swung overhead, Ana bringing her blade just above her forehead to block it. But Den was pushing hard. He was displaying a brute strength she had never seen from him in training. It was almost enough to break her hold. As the thought of her own twin brother slicing her in two filled her mind, her anger mounted within her—intuitively, she curled her free hand into a claw-like grip.

Den’s eyes went wide, she pushed him away from her, sending him stumbling back, hunched over, clutching at his throat. His lightsaber disengaged as it clinked to the ground. He was gagging, gasping for air as he looked at her with a mix of fear and hatred in his eyes.

“This is what you want, Den?!” she shouted, her grip tightening, lifting him into the air by his windpipe, “You were my brother!”

Den tried to form his lips into a sentence, the words barely croaking out. “Ana... please...”

“That’s right. _Beg_ for your life,” Ana spat, “Beg like the _coward_ you always were.”

Den’s face had turned white, and now was beginning to turn blue. She was about to tighten her grip—wrestle the last bit of life from him. But she was interrupted by the sound of slow clapping echoing off the cave chamber.

“Good,” Snoke cooed deeply, striding into the cave, “Good. Release him.”

Ana looked at him bewildered, Den still struggling for air.

“I said release him, you fool!” Snoke bellowed.

She undid her grip all at once. Den fell to the cave floor with a hard thud, hardly able to get himself up to all fours as he gasped raspily for air. Kylo went to him, slowly helping him up, his arm slung around the taller man’s shoulders.

“You both passed,” Snoke said, “You each demonstrated your willingness to kill your _own blood._ ”

Ana breathed heavily. She was disgusted with herself. She had played right into Snoke’s hand. The sound of Den’s labored breathing continued to echo through the darkened chamber.

“Take the boy to the med-bay,” Snoke ordered Kylo, “Tell my crew to prepare my shuttle to go to Starkiller. We’re taking these two to their new home.”

As Kylo helped Den out of the cave, he cast a last sad look at Ana over his shoulder. Ana looked at him, her lips quivering, then looked to Snoke.

“What about the amulet?” she asked him.

Snoke fished into his robe and pulled it out, a circular stone hanging from a chain—the inscription on it looking like a phase of a moon.

“I retrieved it some time ago,” Snoke said, “But don’t worry. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to _fetch things_ for me.”

He turned, walking out and leaving Ana alone in the darkened cave.

Ana sat on her bunk as the shuttle whizzed through hyperspace, gazing at the cold, metal floor. She looked up as the door to her quarters whirred open, seeing the large looming silhouette standing in it.

“Is Den okay?” she asked.

“You nearly killed him,” Kylo responded, “But he’ll recover within a few weeks.”

Ana sighed heavily, continuing to train her eyes on the floor. She was surprised when she felt the weight shift on the bunk as Kylo sat next to her.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he said, “I didn’t want Snoke to kill you.”

“I almost killed my own brother,” Ana said, “I never thought I would—”

She stopped as her voice caught in her throat, a tear rolling down her cheek. Kylo looked at her with concern, placing a hand on her face briefly and thumbing away the tear.

“You’re overwhelmed,” Kylo said, “You didn’t realize you had that sort of power.”

“That was the _Dark Side,_ ” Ana said, “All of my anger and all of my hatred just materialized and I—”

“Didn’t you feel... _exhilarated?_ ” Kylo asked, “To finally reach your full potential—to hold someone’s life in your hands.”

Ana looked at him with tears still in her eyes. “ _Yes,_ ” she admitted, “I felt... _alive._ That’s what I hate most of all.”

“You will learn,” Kylo told her, “You’ll learn to live with who you truly are.”

Ana bit her bottom lip, closing her eyes. More than anything, she wanted to show Ben the light in him. But he had beaten her. He had shown her the darkness within her own self.

“I don’t want you to resent me,” Kylo said, “I don’t want to lose you. The Force brought us back together for a new purpose.”

“I won’t resent you,” Ana told him, “I couldn’t.”

“Not even now?” Kylo asked her, “I can sense the anger and hatred within you—and none of it is directed at me?”

Ana smiled a little, shaking her head. “I could never hate you.”

Kylo gazed at her with his eyes like pure black pools—like looking out into the vast expanse of space at a starless sky.

“I’ve loved you for years,” Ana finally admitted.

Kylo’s lips pursed into something that approached a smile. “I know,” he told her, “I knew on Kashyyyk. You could have killed me.”

“I was saving my brother,” she responded.

“But even if you hadn’t been,” Kylo said, “You wouldn’t have done it.”

“No,” Ana resigned, “I wouldn’t have.”

“Don’t you see, Ana?” he said, “The Jedi would have us scorn attachment. But now—we’re _free._ We can do whatever we want.”

“And what do you want?” Ana asked tremulously.

Kylo answered by placing his large hand on the side of her face, pulling her into a deep kiss. Her hand grabbed his thick forearm, pressing into him, grabbing tightly.

His other hand moved to her hip as he gently guided her to laying down on the bunk, his body following, bearing down on top of her, lips locked all the way.

He pulled out of the kiss, and she was gasping desperately, her heart pounding. She grabbed aggressively at the collar of his robes, undoing the fixtures, opening up his broad chest to the cool air. He helped, taking the rest of it off and returning the favor, unspooling her gently from her robes and kissing down from her neck, down between her breasts as he undressed her. Her tunic and her tabard were cast aside as Kylo began to remove her trousers, causing her to instinctively buck her hips.

“Please...” was the only word she could manage as Kylo wasted no time diving in, his mouth exploring her pussy with a mix of eagerness and earnest aggression. She moaned, her breath finally uncatching from her throat and pouring out in a sound of pleasure.

He wasn’t coming up for air, he just continued diligently, ramping up the pleasure building within her.

“Fuck—please—”

He finally came up for air. “Please _what?_ ”

“Fuck me.”

A grin crossed his face, a glint twinkled in his dark eyes. He stood briefly to take off his pants and kick off his boots, allowing Ana to marvel at his cock, standing full mast.

She gasped a little. It was _enormous._

He climbed back over her, positioning himself, gently pushing her legs up to open her up. He spat on his hand and stroked his length for a moment, before slowly prodding at her entrance, gradually pushing in.

It was in about an inch before Ana stopped holding her breath and let out a moan.

“Shhh,” Kylo coaxed, “ _Breathe._ ”

She obeyed, her breasts heaving as she breathed heavily. He grabbed her hand and held it to his chest—and as another inch entered, she greedily demanded his other hand. Her forearms were crossed, gripping his large hands for dear life as they tugged into each other. Kylo bottomed out and Ana let out a sound that was less of a moan than it was a scream.

“You’re alright,” Kylo coaxed, “It’s okay.”

“I—just—be gentle—I’ve never—”

He smiled sheepishly at her. “Me neither.”

Ana was able to laugh for a moment before she scrunched her face back, her breath holding again.

“ _Breathe._ ”

The reminder was repetitive, but necessary. Her chest rose as she took a deep breath, and he gained the confidence to begin thrusting. Now he fully took the reins. He pinned her hands to the bunk above her head as he thrusted—slow and steady at first, but then picking up speed and intensity. He was looking down, as if he was trying to make sure he was doing it right, but a moan from Ana caused him to look back up and meet her eyes. His mouth was hanging open, breathing heavily, his eyes full of a fervent determination. He bent down and kissed her hungrily, she hummed with pleasure into it.

He burrowed his face further, kissing her neck, eliciting a little yelp from her when he gently grabbed the soft skin with his teeth.

“I’m close,” he whispered in her ear.

“Yeah?” she asked breathlessly. It was soon—but she was reaching her limit. The pain was mounting. She craved relief. She wanted to just collapse into his arms.

But no sooner than he could reply, he grunted, erecting himself above her and pulling out, grabbing his taut cock in his hands, pumping it quickly. His head bucked back, grunting through clenched teeth as a prolific amount of cum spurted out of the end, pooling on Ana’s stomach. He breathed heavily for a moment, looking down at her, his broad chest gleaming with sweat.

Ana’s breathing was finally slowing as she felt Kylo’s hand on her stomach, scooping the warm seed with his hand. He leaned back down over her, meeting her eyes as he gently inserted his cum-soaked fingers into her mouth. She moaned as she tasted the warm substance on her tongue, diligently sucking it off.

“Good girl,” he beamed at her.

She smiled as his fingers left her mouth, and he kissed her.

“I love you,” he said.

“I love you too,” she opened her eyes to see him, “Kylo.”

Ana adjusted her robes as she walked onto the bridge. Two pilots with blast helmets operated the controls and Snoke loomed large in the center of the bridge. Kylo walked in behind her.

“Ah, I wanted you to join me as we reach our base of operations,” Snoke said.

Ana heard a wheezing, mechanical breathing sound. She looked to the side of the cockpit to see Den glaring at her, his mouth and nose enclosed under a breathing apparatus, the tube leading from the mask to a small tank attached to his chest. There was dark bruising around the base of his throat. Above his mask, his eyes burned into her with an intense scorn. She clenched her jaw, meeting his gaze. There was no need to exchange words, even if Den was able to speak—a trust that had existed between them their entire lives had been crushed with overwhelming finality.

The stars unblurred, and a planet snapped into view. It was huge and covered in snow, but an enormous trench had been dug around the entire equator of the world and filled in with metal structures. Most notably, there was a circular opening—a red glow emanating out of it from deep within the planet’s core. Stationed in the foreground was a battalion of Star Destroyers—the same model they had encountered above Batuu.

“This is Starkiller Base,” Snoke said, “With the power of this weapon, we will eliminate the New Republic and claim the galaxy for the _First Order._ ”

Ana gazed ahead, a silent determination stirring within her. This was her life now. She wouldn’t leave Kylo’s side. She felt his hand on her shoulder, and she reached up to place hers on top.

Snoke smiled menacingly ahead at his malevolent creation.

“Welcome to my ranks, Den and Ana Daario,” he said, “Welcome _home._ ”


End file.
